Eggflation Returns As Top Producer Hit With Bird Flu In Kansas

America's top egg producer and distributor revealed on Tuesday that its egg-laying hens at a mega-industrial farm in Kansas had been infected with the highly pathogenic avian influenza. This is bad news as egg prices will likely rebound after crashing from record highs earlier this year. 

On Tuesday, Cal-Maine Foods wrote in a press release that 684,000 laying hens, or approximately 1.6% of its total flock, have been affected by bird flu. The production facility is located in Kansas and has temporarily ceased operations to follow safety protocols instructed by the United States Department of Agriculture. 

Bloomberg noted Cal-Maine escaped bird flu cases after the virus decimated 72 million birds last year.